Sterling timeline

1897: Construction starts on the Hotel Sterling, designed by architect J.H.W. Hawkins and owned by Walter G. Sterling. The Wilkes-Barre Music Hall, right, is demolished to make way for it.

August 1898: The Hotel Sterling officially opens its doors.

1920: Hotelier Homer R. Mallow takes over the Hotel Sterling, left, and remodels it. Renovations include a delicatessen and coffee room at the corner of River and Market streets, which open Nov. 15, 1920.

August 1922: The Plaza Hotel, designed by Warren & Wetmore, is constructed next door to the Sterling.

May 16, 1927: Mallow purchases Plaza Hotel.

1927: Construction of the 14-story Sterling Tower.

1936-1939: The Hotel Sterling goes through a complicated bankruptcy. One of the receivers, state Sen. Andrew J. Sordoni, takes over the hotel in March 1937.

November 1939: Sordoni buys the former Elks' home next to the hotel to use as a recreational facility for guests, which becomes the Sterling Annex.

Dec. 29, 1941: The Hotel Sterling's ballroom was renamed the Admiral Stark Room after a local war hero during the first annual Harveys Lake Protective Association dinner-dance.

February 1946: The Veterans' Administration moves part of its headquarters in the Sterling Annex.

April 1969: The Sterling Hotel complex is sold to Engel Enterprises, with plans to turn it into luxury apartments and office space.

June 1972: Hotel Sterling is inundated in the Tropical Storm Agnes flood, with water up to the second-floor balconies. Presidential candidate George McGovern spoke in its flood-damaged lobby.

1979-1984: The Citizens' Voice has transitional headquarters in the Hotel Sterling, until the fledgling newspaper gets a permanent home at 75 N. Washington St.

1981: Susquehanna Development Corp. purchases the Hotel Sterling, which has been in decline since the 1972 flood and has become an apartment hotel.

1983: Susquehanna Development Corp. stops paying property taxes.

1987: Ali Kazimi buys the Sterling parking lot for $190,000.

1992: The Hotel Sterling is under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

1993: A sheriff's sale is scheduled, but a court order halts it.

1995: The Sterling is again listed for sheriff's sale, but is delayed.

1998: Wilkes-Barre City officials condemn the Sterling after the electricity is shut off for non-payment of a $227,000 bill. Residents are evicted.

July 23, 2002: CityVest, a non-profit community development firm, makes an application to Luzerne County for a Community Development Fund loan to preserve and redevelop the Sterling.

Oct. 16, 2002: Luzerne County Commissioners authorize the loan of $4 million in federal funds from the Community Development Fund pursuant to the CityVest application.

Nov. 7, 2002: CityVest buys the Sterling for $1 million at a delinquent tax sale, planning to undertake a $20 million renovation into residential, retail and office space. More than $1.9 million in delinquent property taxes are owed. The Wilkes-Barre Area School District receives $480,836 from the sale; the city gets $253,896; and the county collects $149,296.

July 2004: The city of Wilkes-Barre initiates eminent domain proceedings to acquire the Sterling parking lot. Litigation continues over ownership and use of the lot.

Sept. 13, 2006: Luzerne County Commissioners authorize the loan of another $2 million, bringing the total county investment to $6 million, of which $1 million was a forgivable loan.

2006-2007: The Sterling tower, left, and adjoining four-story building are torn down. Interior demolition and asbestos abatement is completed. More than 1,000 tons of environmental contamination and debris are removed. CityVest buys the adjacent Perry Block property for $325,000, pays off $303,000 in liens owed to the city for the Perry Block building demolition and agrees to pay Kazimi $650,000 for the parking lot.

2008-2010: The project is marketed to potential developers, but no deal is ever reached, and the Sterling continues to decay. The roof covering and frame need to be replaced, and continued water filtration compromise the structural integrity of the floor construction.

April 15, 2011: Susquehanna Real Estate LP, a York-based development company, recommends demolishing the Sterling, calling that option "the most rational and economic approach while preserving the opportunity to develop the site when market conditions will allow it to achieve its highest and best use." Two other options - partial demolition or full preservation - would cost $15 million to $35 million. CityVest paid Susquehanna about $40,000 for services and its report with funds from the state Department of Community and Economic Development.

June 2011: Luzerne County Controller Walter L. Griffith Jr. releases an audit critical of county decisions to provide $6 million to CityVest for the Sterling preservation project from the county business development loan fund. He later complains to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development about misuse of federal funds spent on the Sterling, and HUD begins a federal audit.

Sept. 20, 2011: The city of Wilkes-Barre issues a condemnation notice on the Sterling, citing a compromised roof and floor, as well as damage to the ceilings, steel frame work, facade, etc. The letter of condemnation advises CityVest of "an imminent danger with regard to this structure's integrity."

Jan. 2, 2012: Luzerne County's home-rule charter takes effect. The county commissioner form of government is replaced with a council-manager government, and new county officials begin reviewing the $1 million allocation.

April 10, 2012: County council agrees with County Manager Robert Lawton's recommendation to revoke county financial support to demolish the Sterling.

Sept. 25, 2012: Luzerne County Council agrees with Lawton's recommendation to conditionally spend up to $232,729 to demolish the Sterling. County officials insist on a three-party agreement with the city and CityVest, but disputes over liability concerns and waivers prevent the county and CityVest from agreeing to terms.

November 2012: HUD releases an audit that recommends the county return $6 million misspent on the Hotel Sterling. The county opposes the recommendation. According to the HUD audit, CityVest spent $1.5 million on property acquisition, $3.3 million on demolishing buildings near the Sterling and $1.2 million on professional and financial fees.

December 2012: The City of Wilkes-Barre decides to demolish the Sterling without financial or administrative assistance from Luzerne County.

April 2013: CityVest publishes a legal notice about plans to dissolve as a corporate entity.

June 27, 2013: Wilkes-Barre City Council approves a demolition contract with Brdaric Excavating of Luzerne for $419,000.

July 25, 2013: Demolition of the Hotel Sterling set to begin.

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